BirdFest 2024

The Great Louisiana BirdFest


Mini BirdFest trips 2024

Bird Walk at Northlake Nature Center, Sunday December 17, 2023   (time TBD)

BirdFest trip to Manchac Swamp.  Registration remains open.

Friday, October 18, 2024     TBD 

Friday, May 17, 2024      at 6:30 am til noon

“Bayous and Canals of the Manchac Swamp” bird watching by pontoon boat. We start out at Joyce Wildlife Area to see the migratory birds feast on the swamp from a boardwalk. The trip continues on a leisurely boat ride into “Stinking Bayou” for some different habitat and more excellent birding where alligators are common. We will have an experienced bird guide to point out all the migrating birds as they pass our way! Bring your binoculars and cameras for a spectacular showcase of birds in flight! $45 members/$50 non-members. Limited space is available so register early! Contact rue@northlakenature.org or call 985-626-1238 to register early! Rain date is Friday, May 24, 2024.

 

The Great Louisiana BirdFest is an annual event of the Northlake Nature Center. It is held each year in the spring when many species are migrating north through Louisiana from Mexico and South America. (See http://losbird.org/checklist.htm for a birding checklist.) Our location in southern Louisiana makes this an excellent time of year for birding. The weather is typically warm but not yet hot and the trees are usually leafing out, but still thin enough for improved visibility.

Pick Your Passion

BirdFest trips will visit varied habitat including swamps, wetlands, pine savanna, and hardwoods of southeast Louisiana.

BirdFest includes birding trips, some Southern food and hospitality, and a few workshops. Check the details below and join us for good birding and a wonderful time. Before and after our scheduled trips, take a leisurely walk through the Northlake Nature Center preserve. There are seven miles of trails through our 400 acres, marked for self-guided tours. Habitats and features at the Nature Center site include a grove of giant southern magnolias, Cypress/gum swamp, and a beaver pond on Bayou Castine. You may see wood ducks, migrant warblers, and if you're lucky, our flock of wild turkeys! So, plan to take this pleasant walk.  

Proceeds from all BirdFest trips go to support the mission of the Northlake Nature Center.

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Great Louisiana Bird Fest 2020


Birding in South Louisiana

No other coast in the entire world is as busy with birds as the coast of Louisiana. Each year, nearly the entire eastern population and several species of the western population of migratory neo-tropical songbirds and waterfowl migrate through Louisiana’s coast in what is one of the world's greatest spectacles. On some days in April, more than a million birds will reach Louisiana's coast. Spring migrants arrive on Louisiana’s coast after a long gulf crossing and rely on the coastal wetlands to restore depleted energy reserves and to provide food and cover.

The effects of weather on migration

In past years, approximately 125 to 150 species have been seen during BirdFest. The numbers are largely dependent on the weather. As is true in any Gulf Coast birding location, numbers and species of birds is highly dependent on the weather, with the best birding following a strong cold front moving through the birding site. This may create conditions for a “fallout” where trans-gulf migrants, battling wind and rain, go to ground soon after they hit land. These “fallouts” offer the opportunity to see a high number of species and during these events hundreds of individuals of a single bird species may be packed into very small areas where they can be easily observed. Although fallouts are not very common, we have encountered them in a couple of spectacular years during BirdFest and there is always the possibility that this year could be one. Even in fair weather when some trans-gulf migrants may continue inland many migrants will stop in south Louisiana. Our resident and breeding bird populations are greatly augmented by migrants; Gray Catbird and Indigo Bunting are two examples, often arriving in flocks.

Birds that can be seen on most of the BirdFest trips

Lists of birds seen at trip locations in recent years may be found on EBird.org. Links are posted in trip descriptions. The LOS Louisiana birds list may be found at the following location http://losbird.org/checklist.htm. The following birds occur commonly in southeast Louisiana and can be expected on almost any trip and so may not be mentioned in individual trips. Note that resident and breeding bird populations may be outnumbered by migrants for any given species.

Wintering Birds: Tree Swallow, Yellow-rumped (Myrtle) Warbler, and White-throated Sparrow. Resident and Breeding Birds: Great-blue Heron, Great and Snowy Egret; Black and Turkey Vulture; Laughing Gull, Mourning Dove, Chimney Swift, Ruby-throated Hummingbird, Red-bellied and Downy Woodpecker; Great-crested Flycatcher, Eastern Kingbird, White-eyed Vireo, Blue Jay, American and Fish Crow; Purple Martin, Carolina Chickadee, Tufted Titmouse, Carolina Wren, Northern Mockingbird, Northern Parula, Pine Warbler, Common Yellowthroat, Northern Cardinal, Red-winged Blackbird, and Common Grackle.

Possible Migrants: raptors, vireos, warblers, tanagers, grosbeaks, orioles, thrushes, and buntings.



What’s new?

Every year since its inception, The Great Louisiana BirdFest has incorporated at least one new trip. 2020 is no exception. We will return to perennial favorite sites; add a new site in the longleaf pine savanna habitats; and visit a beautiful location for the BirdFest Social so that our visitors can combine good birding with a taste of Louisiana and enjoy the lovely surroundings.

Transportation

All trips are “Self Drive.” Maps and driving instructions will be provided in advance and you will drive yourself to the meeting place for the start of the trip. Please make sure you provide us with accurate contact information so we can get this information to you.

Our schedule this year includes new and innovative trips. If you visited last year and missed some of our unique birding sites, please register early so you won't be disappointed! Follow the links below for detailed descriptions of this year's trips and events and then register for those that you wish to attend.

  • Reservations will be filled in the order in which they were received. Many of the trips and events have limited seating or space.
  • Your registration and payment must be received by March 23 if we must send confirmation by mail. Registrations received after April 1 will be confirmed by email or during phone order.
  • All participants will meet at the field trip locations. Directions will be provided for each registered participant. All trips are self-drive.
  • The prices listed below are for non-members. If you would like to become a member and receive discounted prices, click here to buy your membership.
  • If the trip that you are interested in is full, email birdfest@northlakenature.org to be put on the waiting list.

Register to attend the Great Louisiana BirdFest

Register by Mail
or Register by our Secure Online Registration Form Below

Click the member / non-member links above to register for appropriate field trip.
If you would like to be a member and receive discounted prices, Buy Your Membership Here
.
 .

Saturday March 14, 2020
9:00 am - 12:00 pm 1. Intro to Birding, Binoculars & Guides: Details & Registration $25.00
1:00 pm - 4:00 pm 2. Intro to Birding, Binoculars, & Guides: Details & Registration $25.00

Sunday March 15, 2020
2:00 pm - 6:00 pm 3. Backyard Garden & Tea: Details & Registration $30.00
2:00 pm - 6:00 pm 4. BYG - optional canoe paddle (must also register for BYG&Tea): Details & Registration $30.00

Sunday March 29, 2020
3:00 pm to 6:30 pm 5. Sunset Atchafalaya Basin Eagles Nests Photography Boat Tour: Details & Registration $65.00

Friday, April 3, 2020
6:15 am - 12:00 pm noon 6. Manchac Swamp / Joyce WMA: Details & Registration $45.00
5:30 pm - 9:00 pm 7. Big Branch by Night & RCW's: Details & Registration $25.00

Saturday April 4, 2020
7:00 am - 11:00 am 8. Honey Island Swamp: Details & Registration $25.00
3:00 pm to 6:30 pm 9. Sunset Atchafalaya Basin Eagles Nests Boat Tour: Details & Registration $55.00

Sunday April 5, 2020
7:00 am - 12:00 pm noon 10.Bogue Chitto River Reserve Habitats: Details & Registration $25.00
5:00 pm - 7:30 pm 11.BirdFest Social: Details & Registration $45.00

Monday April 6, 2020
8:00 am - 11:00 am 12. Bartholomew Rookery -- Birding and Photography: Details & Registration $40.00

Friday October 2, 2020
2:30 pm to 5:30 pm 13. Manchac Swamp: Details & Registration $50.00

Registration Fee and Sales tax
If you attend any of the field trips, there is a $5 registration fee for each trip. $5.00

Nature Store
Nature Store Click here to purchase T-shirts, patches, prints & posters!


BirdFest Sponsors



Cancellation and Refund Policy:

The Northlake Nature Center reserves the right to cancel any event for any reason. For cancellations before March 21, 2020 we will notify registered participants as soon as possible, and a refund will be issued. For trip cancellations after March 21, 2020 (caused by weather or road conditions for example) refunds will not be issued.

Registrant cancellations may be made and refunds granted per the following policies:

  • Registrant cancellations by March 9, 2020 – full refund
  • Registrant cancellations by March 21, 2020 – 50% refund
  • Registrant cancellations after March 21, 2020 – will not be refunded
  • A $5 administrative fee will be deducted from all cancellations

Accommodations:

There are several hotels and bed and breakfasts in the area. For complete information, please contact The St. Tammany Parish Tourist and Convention Commission -- 1-800-634-9443, or http://www.louisiananorthshore.com/cms/d/lodging.php

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